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Bridge Condition Assessment Using Remote Sensors

Michigan Technological University's Michigan Tech Transportation Institute (MTTI) and Michigan Tech Research Institute (MTRI), in cooperation with the Center for Automotive Research and the Michigan Department of Transportation, are undertaking a project for the United Stated Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT) Research and Innovative Technology Administration that will explore the use of remote sensing technologies to assess and monitor the condition of bridge infrastructure and improve the efficiency of inspection, repair, and rehabilitation efforts. This investigation will build on existing work that places sensors directly on the bridge structure to assess deterioration and damage. Remote sensing technologies will be correlated with in-place sensors to obtain bridge condition assessment data without the need to place heavy instrumentation on the structure. This information will then be analyzed by a computer decision support system to develop unique signatures of bridge condition. Monitoring how these signatures change over time will provide state and local engineers with additional information used to prioritize critical maintenance and repair of our nation's bridges. The ability to acquire this information remotely from many bridges without the expense of a dense sensor network will provide more accurate and near real-time assessments of bridge condition. Improved assessments allow for limited resources to be better allocated in repair and maintenance efforts, thereby extending the service life and safety of bridge assets, and minimizing costs of service-life extension.